Absence Makes the Heart Grow Fonder
by EweLamb Lover
Summary: Jane Hammerstein's family has earned a trip to London for one week but has taken a dead-end stop to Hollow Hill. Being the type that goes out of her way to be defiant to anyone's society but her own has earned some attention from a certain Goblin King. Rated T just to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

A nightmare. That is what I'll call it; a nightmare. We were supposed to be in London by three thirty and we're stuck in the middle of who-knows-where in old country England at two! Perfect.

Let me introduce myself, my name is Jane Hammerstein. I'm an American nobody from little typical Richmond, Virginia who happens to love Musicals, Shakespeare and manga and things that aren't exactly "in" this century. But I digress. The predicament that I find myself in started around five days ago when my dad came home with some pretty exciting news.

"We're going to England." My father yelled across the room to my mom in the kitchen.

"Wait, what?" I exclaimed nearly jumping from my chair in excitement, completely forgetting my Inuyasha vol. 16 on the couch. "Why?" My father kissed his wife before answering.

"I've done enough hours at work to earn a little vacation out of country, and!" holding up his finger before my mother could interrupt "Managed to get you a ticket to see Les Miserables in London!" I couldn't speak. I couldn't even breathe.

Let me clarify something here. My dad works in the most boring of places that you'll find most parents in comic books or kid TV shows working in. Remember that one parent, usually the dad, working in the top floor of some building in the city, where the room only has the desk, a chair, and a random plant in the corner? That's my dad's office. He's an accountant and only gets enough for us to live in a nice home with home-cooked meals. This little surprise was an especially good treat.

"How did you manage all of that, dear?" My mother asked. Of course this question would be brought up.

"Let's just say I've pushed the right buttons." He said winking at me. I couldn't believe it. We were going to London.

"But, what are you two going to do while I'm watching the play? And what are you going to do with Gilgert?"

"What about me?" My little brother hollered as he walked in the room. Figures. My brother, Gilbert, was your typical annoying thirteen younger brother. He was four years younger than me but still managed to outgrow me by three inches, which he never lets me forget. He was a nice looking kid; being tall with straight hair that nimbly curls at the tips, grassy green eyes that sometimes change to a light sea green, a cute little nose that experienced too many pinchings, and a slight smile that gives him a shyness. He's cute, but he's my little brother, so I'll never admit it.

"I was about to get to that." My father answered pulling me from my thoughts and smiled lovingly at my mother which earned a little giggle from her. "You're mother and I will be touring around London while Gilbert," Gilbert looked up from his Ipod touch at the sound of his name. My dad slightly frowned at him. "What _would_ you like to do in London, son?"

"Ah'unno." He mumbled glancing back to his device. "I guess going to the place where you try to make the guards laugh." My dad clapped his hands.

"Then I guess that settles it. We'll be going to London in four days and staying for a week, so start packing!" I was already halfway to my room be the time he was finished.

I started to pack some of my belongings when I came upon my small family picture frame on my nightstand and- without knowing why—placed it into my bag feeling I would be looking at it a lot more than usual. I dismissed the feeling with a shrug and resumed packing only to stop for dinner. When I was done packing it was pretty late in the night so I got in my pink Eeyore pajama's and fell asleep the minute my head hit the pillow dreaming about Les Miserables and the sights we'll see in London, and also eyes. Eyes that shone like silver in moonlight that held sorrow that nearly broke my heart. I awoke the next morning with a feeling of dread.

**A/N Hello my dear ones! I have written this story for pure entertainment only, I don't own Clare B. Dunkle's Hollow Kingdom and I won't pretend that I do. Reviews are always nice, no swearing please else I'll banish you from Narnia. I hope to get this done fast so I won't have you all waiting. ;) **


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

"Jane, Jane!"

"Hmm?!" I mumbled irritably while trying to "enjoy" a very suspicious looking school lunch. Katie, my best friend since third grade, pouted.

"Why are you going to London without me?!" She flung her arms around my shoulders and faked sobbed into my shirt. Oh goodness.

"You hypocrite, get off me!" I laughed while trying to shove her away. "You went over to Japan last summer! Don't I get this winter break too?"

"No." She pouted. "John! Tell her it isn't fair!" My terrific boyfriend, without missing a beat said:

" "You say that so often, I wonder what your base for comparison is." "

"LABYRINTH! Yes!" I fist-bumped him. Katie pouted even more. "Hey Katie!"

"What?" We stared at each other for a moment; my face had one of my classic "Oh yeah, you know what's going to happen now" face and her face dared me to say the next line in my head. I did dare. My face shifted to one that I call "Creepily Sexy" Katie never lasted when I make this face.

"You remind me of the babe." She smiled and shook her head. I waited for a full minute for her to answer me until she threw her hands in the air in defeat.

"What babe?" I leaned closer to her.

"The babe with the power!" John looked up from his meal with his face of "really? Here?"

"What power?" Katie continued.

"Voodoo!"

"Who do?"

"You do!"

"Do what?" Here we got really close to each other's face. I brought my hand up and started to caress her face super creepy like.

"Remind me of the babe!" We both started busting out laughing! "John!" He gave a start at my outburst but quickly recovered.

"What?" He asked suspiciously. I quickly scooted my chair over to him which was really difficult having Katie's head on my lap. I got close to his face like we were about to kiss, but he knew better than to anticipate that, and keeping a completely serious face I whispered to him.

"Dance you pedo pants off." Oh he didn't make it. Soon we had most of the high school cafeteria looking at us like we were complete idiots while we laughed, we kind of were idiots though to be perfectly fair. After we had calmed down I looked back at John. Oh, dear, slightly curly chocolate hair John.

I don't even know how we became boyfriend and girlfriend. We were/are best friends and just one day we started doing couple-ish things; Holding hands, cuddling, and then came the kisses. Oh I've waited for so long to be kissed by a guy like John. He wasn't a jock (ew no) and he wasn't a musician either, he was a drawer like me. We met in an art class in elementary school. I just moved into the school so I didn't have any friends but I loved to draw things. I wasn't very good at drawing so I took an art class (well... in grade school you're forced to take art class anyway) and tried to make a friend. Yeah no. I'm shyer than a mouse on its birthday.

The Teacher assigned my seat between two talkative boys (which kind of shut them up real quick) and started to teach us how to draw a house using shapes such as squares, circles, triangles, rectangles, etc. She handed us each a piece of paper and instructed us to gather some crayons and soon we were all busy trying to draw a house. The first part of the class went pretty well and I had most of my house finished, soon though the boys on both sides of me got bored and tried to talk to each other again, but seeing that I was in their way made it difficult.

My house was almost finished when they started to pick on me. Just little things here and there like taking a crayon that I was using then breaking it before giving it back to me, tugging on my hair, poking my sides and such. But then they started getting meaner.

"Is that supposed to be a house? It looks more like a box with bullet holes."

"These are my crayons! Get your own coodie bag!" finally I had enough. I slapped the boy on my right on his cheek and started yelling.

"My house is not a box full of bullet holes! What's full of bullet holes is your FACE!" He started crying. Of all the nerve!

"Stop crying you bug baby!" I yelled. I got in trouble with the teacher for that. A few days later after being unfairly punished I returned to art class with a little weight on my tiny shoulders. The boys beside me never spoke to me again, the one on my right wouldn't even look in my direction. I held a bit of satisfaction in my heart when I would reach over to get something in his direction and he would flinch a little.

I just realized that I was a cruel child….this doesn't really surprise me in the slightest.

But if you haven't have guessed already John was the little boy I slapped. It took a few grades but we started to become art buddies and then started becoming class buddies then school buddies and then just, buds. I thought he would have hated me after I slapped him and later on in our friendship he told me he was extremely mad and embarrassed that he got slapped by a girl. But he told me that he grew up from that when he saw at how awesome I can draw and he thought he could use me. Heh. No.

I looked down at Katie who had incidentally fallen asleep in my lap. With Katie it was different.

I met Katie when John and I started third grade and when we started having a sort of bond. It was during lunch when I was waiting for John and some of my other friends at lunch by drawing. A girl that I had never seen before sat herself right next to me, breathed down my neck for a full minute and a half before asking:

"Did you draw that?"

"yeah…?"

"Cool. I like Dragon Ball Z too."

That's how our friendship started basically.

Now here we are, in high school, quoting David Bowie's the Labyrinth without a single care in the world. It was always funny how the way things turn out.

"Jane?" John's voice had gotten deeper, it was really weird to think about the little ragamuffin that I used to know was becoming such a man. I was really lucky to have a guy like John for a friend.

"Yeah?"

"How long are you going to be gone in London?"

"I don't know. A week? A month? Ten years?" I joked. He lightly pushed my arm.

"I'm serious. How long?"

"A week is what I'm guessing. Maybe about ten days? But don't worry," I quickly said noticing the frown forming on his face. "I should be home before Christmas." He smiled sweetly at me, the smile that has lately made me into a puddle of jelly, and leaned in towards me. This was when we kissed. No silliness. No random movie quotes to recite close to each other's face. Just a nice sweet kiss.

"Oh glob I think I might puke!" Katie's voice startled us out of our moment. "Why did I have to wake up to a view like that?!"

"What?" John asked slyly as she sat up from my lap. "Don't like the view?" He nuzzled his face into the crook of my neck while hugging me close. Gah! He knows I'm super tickle-ish there.

"Oh glob stop! Just stop! Stop with your lovey-dovey ways! This is just too weird!" Katie started flailing her arms. John and I looked to each other, grew sly smiles and looked at Katie. She stopped flailing and looked at our faces her face becoming somewhat frightened and tried not to giggle. "No, I know what you both are thinking so stop it. And stop changing the subject you two! Jane. You can't go to London without me!" I sighed in mock frustration.

"Katie, we've had this conversation before but now the roles are switched. It's your comeuppance my dear."

"Hey you know I would have let you into my suitcase if it weren't so dangerous!"

"Of course. And you know I would do the same for the exact same reason." She pouted.

"John. Tell her you'll miss her terribly!" she threw herself down at his feet hugging onto his legs. "Beg her to stay like a good obsessive boyfriend who can't LIVE to see the daylight without his" she glanced at me, batting her long eyelashes "Lady Love." John blushed slightly and I had to laugh. John coughed a few times into his fist and pried Katie's vise like grip from his legs.

"She wants to go Katie. When was the last time she went on a trip like this?" Katie knew she had lost so she hung her head dramatically and jumped into my lap hugging me close.

"But it's just not fair!" She wailed. Some people were giving us some concerned looks. I patted her back.

"Don't start this back up again Katie! I _will_ make it happen and you know it!" The bell that lunch had come to an end soon sounded. We all quickly threw away our food stuffs and started walking on our normal route to our classes. John and I waved goodbye to Katie and I yelled to her that we'll hang out again today. "Like lobsters we are!" She yelled back.

John and I started walking again towards our classes while holding hands. We talked about little nothings and just enjoyed being around each other. Finally we came to our normal spot to part ways, we kissed and I started to walk away when he called after me grabbing my wrist as he did so.

"Jane wait."

"What?"

"Tell me truthfully, what would you like for Christmas?"

"Ugh, not this question again." I whined. I honestly didn't have a clue. Trying to get the pressure of the question off of me I asked "What would you like?" Nailed it. John looked at me seriously for a moment looking into my eyes. Slowly he reached his hand out and cupped my cheek.

"Honestly? All I want now is for you to come home safely from your trip, smiling that smile that I've always loved and to tell me all about your trip." I stared at him with a bashful grin on my face.

"That's lame. I was hoping you'd say an Xbox game or something…"

"Did you get me an Xbox game?"

"No!" Yes. He laughed and kissed my forehead before asking me again what I would like.

"John, I'm going to England to watch Les Miserables. All I would like for Christmas is to watch Star Trek junk with you on a couch with popcorn and hot chocolate. That's what I want."

"So you want to actually have popcorn for movies before Katie eats it all?" He joked and I laughed so hard.

"Yeah, that would be nice too." We kissed our goodbyes and walked our separate ways to our classes.

Little did I know that I wouldn't get my present this year.

**A/N: HOLY COW! *shields self from flying flaming rocks* I'm sorry! I'm sorry that it took me almost a full year to upload the next chapter! All I have are excuses as to why it wasn't here and yadda, yadda, yaddda! I'M SORRY!**

**So, here we have the introduction of our girl's friends and probably just some form of filler here (I'm sorry) but I'm glad with the way they came out…..I'll probably add a bit more description of them soon enough as to what they look like (I'm terrible with that) but in the meantime enjoy! I promise that I have the next chapter finished and I'll upload it soon (I PROMISE!)**


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